American Idol (season 5)
The fifth season of American Idol premiered on January 16, 2019. The season was hosted by Ryan Seacrest. Regional Auditions Auditions were held in New York, Los Angeles, Phoenix, New Orleans, Indianapolis, Omaha, Nashville, and Salt Lake City. Hollywood week The Hollywood rounds of the audition process were held over four days in November 2018 at the Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles. The first round consisted of each contestant singing one song a capella of their own choosing in front of the judges and all the other contestants. Contestants were then told whether they were moving on or going home, in groups of six. This extended over the first two days. The second round took place on the second and third day, and consisted of groups of three or four contestants choosing, rehearsing, and then performing one of nine pre-selected songs. Groups were reviewed and contestants were then judged individually as to whether they were moving on or going home. The third round took place on the fourth day, and consisted of individual contestants performing a song from a pre-selected list, accompanied by a piano and backup singers. Contestants were again informed of whether they had made the cut or not. Green mile The final pre-audience voting cut down took place at the Pasadena Civic Center on January 12 or 13, 2019, just before the regional audition shows began airing. Without any further auditioning, but possibly with some audience research having taken place, the 40 remaining contestants were reduced to 24. In a process taking a whole day, contestants wait in a sitting room until one by one, they go up an elevator and take a long walk to the other end of the Center's Gold Room. Then the three judges told them whether they have made it onto the stage show or are cut. The 24 semi-finalists were announced February 14, 2019. Semi-finals The semi-finals began on February 19, 2019. There were three shows each week for the three weeks of the semi-finals. The semi-finals featured the contestants (24 total) divided by gender with the 12 male singers singing on Tuesdays and the 12 female singers on Wednesdays. Each person had the chance to select a song to sing live in front of the judges. Following the show's airing, each U.S. timezone would have two hours to vote by phone or by text-messaging. On Thursday, the two of each group with the fewest votes were eliminated each week until the finals. Semi-finalists Females *'Jordin Esparza', 20 years old, auditioned in Omaha, and currently resides in Somerset, KY. *'Marisa Harari', 18 years old, auditioned in Los Angeles, and currently resides in Pomona, CA. *'Meghan Bryant', 24 years old, auditioned in Omaha, and currently resides in Joliet, IL. *'Rachel Rudolph', 27 years old, auditioned in New York, and currently resides in Marshalls Creek, PA. *'Ally Johns', 22 years old, auditioned in Omaha, and currently resides in Marquette, MI. *'Aryn Grace', 18 years old, auditioned in Nashville, and currently resides in Chicago, IL. Males *'Justin Hernandez', 22 years old, auditioned in New York, and currently resides in Rockford, IL. *'Travis Cohen', 26 years old, auditioned in Indianapolis, and currently resides in Huntsville, AL. *'Finnegan McMillan', 18 years old, auditioned in Los Angeles, and currently resides in El Cajon, CA. *'Stephen Hudson', 25 years old, auditioned in New York, and currently resides in New York, NY. *'Jamey Johnson', 25 years old, auditioned in Phoenix, and currently resides in Fontana, CA. *'Matt Zahn', 19 years old, auditioned in New Orleans, and currently resides in Tampa, FL. 'Top 24' Theme: 1960s Females Males 'Top 20' Theme: 1970s Females Males 'Top 16' Theme: 1980s Females Males Finals Finalists The 12 finalists were announced on March 7, 2019. As in past years, the top 12 will appear on the annual compilation album while the top 10 will be the participants in the American Idol summer concert tour. Also as in past years, one finalist was eliminated every week until the final two, where one will be declared the winner. The following is first in reverse chronological order by elimination date, then in alphabetical order by family name, where applicable. *'Brooke McGrath', 23 years old, auditioned in Los Angeles, and currently resides in Nucla, CO. *'Chris Branson', 29 years old, auditioned in New York, and currently resides in Brooklyn, NY. *'Cody McCardle', 20 years old, auditioned in New Orleans, and currently resides in Wills Point, TX. *'Deja Adams', 17 years old, auditioned in Los Angeles, and currently resides in Las Vegas, NV. *'Elly Markle', 22 years old, auditioned in Omaha, and currently resides in Baltimore, MD. *'Kelley Starner', 25 years old, auditioned in Phoenix, and currently resides in Northridge, CA. *'Kirk Teske', 27 years old, auditioned in Omaha, and currently resides in Murray, UT. *'Lyndsey Morgan', 24 years old, auditioned in Phoenix, and currently resides in Superstition, AZ. *'Marco Encinas', 24 years old, auditioned in New York, and currently resides in Boston, MA. *'Dylan Thompson', 20 years old, auditioned in Omaha, and currently resides in Milwaukee, WI. On March 28, 2019, Thompson was eliminated from American Idol, placing tenth. *'Steph Oliveras', 21 years old, auditioned in New Orleans, and currently resides in San Antonio, TX. On March 21, 2019, Oliveras was eliminated from American Idol, placing eleventh. *'Khalil Mooney', 18 years old, auditioned in Indianapolis, and currently resides in Oak Brook, IL. On March 14, 2019, Mooney was eliminated from American Idol, placing twelfth. Top 12 – Luther Vandross Mentor: Jamie Foxx Top 11 – Broadway Mentor: Idina Menzel Top 10 – Ed Sheeran Mentor: Ed Sheeran Top 9 – Hits from 2018 Elimination chart Note: Bottom 2 indicates that the contestant was 'saved' last. This may or may not indicate his or her actual vote rank. Sometimes, Seacrest will announce that the contestant is in the bottom 2, sometimes he will not.